Thursday, November 28, 2013

Karaage ( Japanese fried chicken )

You'll ask , how come you you haven't made it yet ? Nobody's stopping you ?!

The same way most people are hesitant to deep-fry - copious amount of oil .

Of course , you can just shallow fry it then baked it in the oven ....

Trust me , it wouldn't taste the same .

The craving stops here .

I used about 800 ml of oil in making these tasty morsels .

Too much oil , right ?!

Boy , it was really worth it !

Yeah , I did enjoy it , so much , that I've been thinking of making deep-fried Vietnamese chicken wings -___-''

Waste not , want not - such a shame not to use the oil again , right ?!
I tried the recipe of one of my favorite Malaysian food blogger Sonia of Nasi Lemak Lover and also lurked @ No Recipes' site to get some much needed pointers .
As you can see , some of my fried chicken are not really fluffy , I've shaken off too much coating before frying it tsk tsk !

Using potato starch in this makes sense , since the fried chicken wasn't greasy after it gets cold . Note that potato starch is different from potato flour , okay ? Just Google what's the difference .

* In a medium mixing bowl , combine the chicken , soy sauce , mirin , salt , ginger and garlic . Mix well to combine and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes . I've added 1/2 teaspoon of chili flakes but not enough of it so it was not spicy at all , need more I think or maybe cayenne or chili sauce is much more better .

* In a small bowl , combine the starch and ground pepper and mix .

* In a saucepan , pour oil , the oil is ready if you dip the bamboo chopstick vertically and it sizzles vigorously . Or use a deep-fat frying thermometer , if available .

* Dip a handful of chicken pieces into the starch mixture until each piece is covered well . Drop into the hot oil and when the chicken pieces floats on top , it is done . Repeat with the rest .

* Once all the chicken is done , heat the oil again , add the chicken pieces in small batches and fry until golden brown . Transfer into the paper towel and continue with with the rest . Serve immediately .

Wow what lovely fried chicken! Few weeks back it was Korean fried chicken all over the blog space and now you have introduced Japanese version to me Anne! Like you I am scared of trying fried chicken at home. Too much oil and once I learn I know there would be no stopping me! Let's see how long I can resist! :-)